Friday, May 14, 2021

Great Polyomino Games by Stronghold Games

 I'm gonna date myself a bit, but I'm a child of the 80's/early 90's. Because of that, there are certain things that bring me right back to my childhood: Rainbow Bright, Cabbage Patch Dolls, He-Man and She-Ra... and Tetris! I loved Tetris!  I played it so much I practically saw falling blocks in my sleep!  Haha!  So when I first discovered polyomino tile-laying games, they scratched a special childhood itch.  Thankfully, the folks at Stronghold Games have published a trio of fantastic polyomino games and I'm right here for it!  So let's check them out!



Firstly, these three games were created by Uwe Rosenberg.  If you're a big board game fan, you know that Uwe is a HUGE name in the gaming world!  Games with his name on them automatically have quite a bite of cache, so I was thrilled to check them out! All three are 1-4 player games for ages 10+, that play in about 15 minutes per player. (So the more players you have, the longer the game will go. But even at the top player count of 4, the game will only last about 60 minutes, so they aren't super long.)

1.) Cottage Garden - 



In Cottage Garden, each player is a gardener competing to finish the best garden possible.

2.) Indian Summer - 



In Indian Summer, you're a hiker taking a walk through the beautiful Fall foliage, gathering little treasures like nuts, berries, and mushrooms as you go.

3.) Spring Meadow - 



In Spring Meadow, you're once again hiking - this time up a lovely mountain in springtime. 

Each game has similar game mechanics, but they all play slightly differently.  I'm partial to Indian Meadow, but honestly that's because Fall is my FAVORITE time of year!   I love the colors of Fall!  And I love the look of Indian Summer!

So here's what I like:

1.) The puzzle-y polyomino placement! - As I mentioned, I love puzzle-y, tertis-type games, so these are right up my alley!

2.) The player count! - Need a date night game?  These can be played by 2.  Want a family game night?  These can play up to 4. Can't find anyone to play along? Each game has a solo mode!

3.) The design! - As I mentioned, Indian Summer is my absolute favorite!  But that's because I'm partial to Fall.  All of the games are absolutely beautifully designed!  They're all pleasing to look at and play! I'd say that, of the three, Spring Garden is my least favorite when it comes to esthetics.  Its mostly green and white and black.  Cottage Garden and Indian Summer both have more appealing colors - in my opinion.

If you're a fan of polyomino/puzzle-y type games, you should definite give one of the games in this trio a look! - Or, better yet, check out all three!

I received these games, free of charge from Stronghold Games, in exchange for my honest review.

No comments:

Post a Comment